MERN Template CLI tool

mern-template-jpz is a CLI tool that creates a ready-to-use MERN authentication starter.

The generated app includes a TypeScript/Express + MongoDB backend with secure access/refresh token authentication, plus a React/Vite frontend wired to the API.

What It Creates

• backend - Express, MongoDB, Mongoose, TypeScript, JWT auth, httpOnly refresh cookies, session tracking, rate limiting, and security middleware
• frontend - React, Vite, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, React Router, Zustand, Axios, and auth pages

The scaffold includes registration, login, logout, token refresh, protected routing, and startup refresh handling.

Quick Start

Create a new project folder:

npx mern-template-jpz my-app

You can also run the CLI without a project name:

npx mern-template-jpz

When you do not add a project name, the template files are created in the current folder.

If you created a new project folder, open it:

cd my-app

Install and start the backend:

cd backend
npm install
cp .env.example .env
npm run dev

Open another terminal, then install and start the frontend:

cd my-app/frontend
npm install
cp .env.example .env
npm run dev

The frontend runs at http://localhost:5173 by default. The backend API runs at the port configured in backend/.env.

Using Global Install

npm install -g mern-template-jpz
mern-template-jpz my-app

Command Format

npx mern-template-jpz [project-name]

Options:

• -f, --force - allow scaffolding into a non-empty directory
• -h, --help - show help

Generated Folder Structure

backend/
  src/
    controllers/
    db/
    middlewares/
    models/
    routes/
    services/
    types/
    utils/
    index.ts

frontend/
  src/
    api/
    assets/
    axios/
    components/
    layouts/
    loaders/
    pages/
    routes/
    stores/
    types/
    utils/
    App.tsx
    index.css
    main.tsx

License

This CLI tool is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE.